Nostalgia for right now.

The Day the Earth Caught Fire returns to warn us all (again)

Summer floods at Ascot, Exeter marooned, roads under 6ft of water in Devon, dense heat mists, wildfires, water rationing, and a heatwave so severe that the Thames dries up… these could almost be a running commentary of the natural disasters that have besieged Blighty in the last year or so.

However, despite being a weirdly accurate description of our own meteorologically uncertain times, this is all part of the screenplay from apocalyptic 60s movie The Day the Earth Caught Fire, which is about to get another airing as part of a stellar weekend of sci-fi films at the British Museum.

Part of the launch event for the BFI’s nationwide autumn blockbuster Sci-Fi: Days of Fear and Wonder, the British Museum will be hosting outdoor screenings of The Day the Earth Caught Fire, as well as The Man Who Fell to Earth and Flash Gordon. GEEKS GET EXCITED.

The historic grounds of the British Museum will be transformed for the series of big-screen events over the August Bank Holiday weekend, which will see the three sci-fi classics projected onto a huge, state-of-the-art screen – the BFI’s biggest outdoor screen to date at the British Museum – and will be accompanied by a stellar sound system, thrilling audiences of up to 1,200 each night.

On Thursday 28th August the earth will be unhinged from its axis with the screening of London-set classic, The Day the Earth Caught Fire. Friday will see us attempt inter-galactic contact with The Man Who Fell to Earth, starring David Bowie as a stranded alien. The weekend will conclude with a cult classic as we venture to planet Mongo on Saturday 30th August with Flash Gordon.